Newman, Dublin

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The church was constructed in the gardens beside and behind number 87 St Stephen's Green. The house itself, unfortunately no longer in the possession of the church having served as its presbytery until 1988 when it was sold, was built in 1730 and remained in good structural condition.

Access to the church is through a Romanesque porch erected a few years after the church itself.

This is made up of two Georgian town houses which still contain some of Ireland's most ornate 18thC plasterwork. In 1865 it was part of the first Catholic university allowed in the city after the Restoration. Cardinal Newman was the first rector. Gerard Manley Hopkins, the great poet, was professor of Classics here from 1884 - 1889, although his rooms are very plain and unpretentious. He died there after an unhappy tenure. Next door is the University Church, plain on the outside but inside a gem of neo-Byzantine splendour. Behind the house Iveagh Gardens provide a quiet, little visited and attractive haven from the madding crowds.

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The interior is richly decorated with an ornate baldachino over the altar, an arcaded gallery with screens and an elaborate pulpit. Have a look at the website and some pictures of mine.:-).